The term oracle can often carry a negative connotation in Christian circles. When we hear the word oracle, this may conjure the image of the oracles of Delphi, where female priestesses in Ancient Greece (Acts 16:16), such as sites like Delphi, would tell “prophecies” by inhaling toxic fumes.
So why do some translations of the Bible have this phrase in them: “The oracles of God”? Don't oracles automatically have an occult connotation? Or does the phrase mean something different and develop different meanings over time?
We’ll dive into where we see this phrase in the Bible and why it matters that we analyze phrases like “the Oracles of God.”
Where Are the Oracles of God?
The phrase “oracles of God” appears in various forms in the Old and New Testaments and can sometimes appear in certain modern translations. The word seems to mean, in both the Hebrew and the Greek, “the word of God.”
The Greek form (Acts 7:38) logion means one of two things: The Word of the Lord as seen in the Mosaic law or a divine utterance of God.
In other words, God’s word.
The Hebrew word (2 Samuel 16:23) dabar means speech. So essentially, the spoken Word of the Lord.
You can find other examples of both phrases in this article.
Are There Pagan Types of Oracles in the Bible?
As mentioned above, we do encounter a woman who appears to prophesy, similar to the priestesses at Delphi, in Acts 16:16. In fact, she was most likely from Delphi, as indicated by the root Greek word associated with her nature of being possessed by demons in order to foretell the future.
We do have to keep in mind that the New Testament writers did not use the word logion in association with her or the demon Pythian or Python, which possessed her.
That means we do have a distinction between the oracles as we know the term now in a modern sense and oracles in the Old and New Testaments, in reference to God’s word.
The Bible does not approve of the other type of oracles, mediums, or prophetesses who, through demonic power, foretell the future or conjure up spirits of the dead. We see an example in the Old Testament of what happens when an Israelite king consults a medium (1 Samuel 28).
Saul, distressed by the recent death of his friend and prophet Samuel, consults a medium in Endor and asks her to call up the spirit of Samuel. When called, the late Samuel is less than pleased and says that because Saul has done this, Israel will lose to their enemy, the Philistines, in battle the next day.
Scripture makes its stance incredibly clear on those who use the forces of darkness to peer into the future (Leviticus 19:31; Leviticus 20:6; Isaiah 8:19).
So, when the Bible uses the term “oracles of God,” it should not be in any way associated with the definition of oracles that refers to people who practice divination, foretell the future via non-godly means, and engage in practices of the occult.
What Does the Bible Say about the Oracles of God?
Let's dive into what Scripture has to say about the Oracles and God and discuss.
Habakkuk 1:1: "The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw."
God speaks to the prophets in this way. In an article that dives into Urim and Thummim, we discuss one of the ways God may have done so. We know that prophets often represented a middle man between God and man. God would often speak to the prophets and through the prophets, the people would hear the message of the Lord.
Isaiah 17:1: "An oracle concerning Damascus. Behold, Damascus will cease to be a city and will become a heap of ruins."
The message of the Lord would often tell the people of Israel what was to come. The verse above speaks about the city of Damascus. We see many of these types of "oracle" throughout the Old Testament. God foretells of the destruction of nations and cities, predominantly cities that waged war against God's people. Although the Israelites did receive plenty of messages about the destruction and tragedy, they too would take part in. After all, they had disobeyed God as well.
Acts 7:38: "This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us."
It's really interesting that the Bible is referred to here as the living oracles. We know it now as the living Word. In this case, we can use the terms interchangeably. Unlike the oracles at Delphi that contained nonsensical riddles from gas fumes, these words come from the Living God himself. When we read the Bible, we can sense the living and active parts of it, even when we have read the same sections over and over again.
Malachi 1:1: "The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi."
It's really interesting that this verse uses the phrase "through Malachi." Once again, we see how God used the prophets of old to convey his messages, his word, his oracle to the people of Israel. Malachi was the last prophet who did so in the Old Testament, but we see the word oracle in action throughout the New Testament. The importance of God's word never ceases.
Why Does it Matter That We Make This Distinction between Oracles?
People can often try to disprove Scripture by pointing out what seem to be flaws in translation. They may say, “Look, Leviticus talks against things like oracles, but in this book here it says oracles of God.” People will often argue over translated semantics, not understanding that words had a different contextual and cultural meanings at the time in which they were written.
We have to understand the original language used and the context of Scripture. The Bible never portrays divination and pagan oracles in a good light. But those who do not understand the original language from which Scripture has been translated may highlight the word oracles to disprove the Bible or to show that engaging in “oracles,” as we know the term now, is not all that bad. Any time the Bible appears to contradict itself, we really need to investigate the context and true meaning of the word. Otherwise, we run the risk of committing eisegesis: forming our own interpretations of the text based on our cultural and historical biases.
We should also regard “the oracles of God” with high importance. If God speaks to us, whether through his word or vocally, his words carry absolute truth. We should make sure to heed his message whenever we receive the oracles of God. God has used these oracles throughout history. He spoke them through His Word and through his prophets. They saw the importance of them, and we should do the same when it comes to reading Scripture.
Scripture is living and active. It contains the living words (oracles) of God, and we ought to soak in the words and apply them to our lives.
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Helin Loik-Tomson
Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
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